Foxy Brown (rapper)
- For other uses, see Foxy Brown (disambiguation)
Template:Infobox musical artist 2 Foxy Brown (born Inga Marchand on September 6 1979 in Brooklyn, New York) is an American rapper of Afro-Trinidadian and Indo-Trinidadian descent [1] known for her solo work as well as numerous collaborations and a brief stint as part of hip-hop supergroup The Firm. She has released four albums: Ill Na Na (1996), The Firm (1997) Chyna Doll (1999), and Broken Silence (2001). After a bitter split with her record label Def Jam in 2003, Brown ended up in label limbo. In 2004 childhood friend and collaborator Jay-Z signed Brown to Def Jam and his Rocafella Records label, when he became the president of the company.
In 2005, while in the midst of recording her fourth studio album Black Roses, Brown faced another hardship when she was diagnosed with sensorineural hearing loss. The hearing impairment took 100% of Brown's hearing, but 20% was restored after an operation to repair it. A later operation restored 100% of her hearing [2]. Brown also landed in legal trouble when two manicurists who alleged that she assaulted them during a 2004 altercation pressed criminal charges against her. The trial is set for July.
1995-1996: the Ill Na Na era
While still a teenager, Brown won a talent contest in Brooklyn, and was invited to freestyle on stage. At that time, production team Trackmasters were working on LL Cool J's Mr. Smith album, and they decided to let her rap over "I Shot Ya." The single became a hit, prompting Brown's work with Total, Toni Braxton, and Case, as well as her induction into the Firm posse (led by Nas and also including AZ and Cormega).
Before she had released any material at all, Foxy Brown appeared on several 1995-1996 platinum singles, including her first credit, LL Cool J's "I Shot Ya," as well as Total's "No One Else" remix, Jay-Z's "Ain't No Nigga", Toni Braxton's "You're Makin' Me High" remix, and Case's "Touch Me, Tease Me" along with Mary J. Blige. The success led to a major-label bidding war at the beginning of 1996, and by March Brown had signed with the Def Jam label.
In 1996 Brown released her debut album Ill Na Na to mixed reviews but strong sales. The album was produced by Trackmasters, and featured appearances from Blackstreet, Method Man, and Kid Capri. It hit number seven its first week on the U.S. album chart. Despite some positive reviews, Ill Na Na was heavily criticized for its explicit lyrics, particularly because Brown was only sixteen years old at the time of the recording. The album went on to go platinum and launched two hit singles. Fellow raunchy female rapper and Brooklyn native, Lil' Kim, also appeared on the music scene around the same time and the media immediately created a rivalry between once friends Brown and Kim.
1997-1998: Firm Allstars
The East Coast gangsta rap supergroup The Firm never lived up to its excessive hype and instead became a brief footnote in the careers of its main participants. Including Brown the foursome included three other New York rappers — (Nas, AZ and Nature — but was actually the pet project of its producers: Nas Escobar (as he referred to himself at the time), Steve "Commissioner" Stoute, Dr. Dre, and the Trackmasters.
An early form of the Firm appeared on "Affirmative Action," a standout song from Nas' second album, It Was Written. Foxy Brown, AZ and Cormega joined Nas for the song — each taking a verse — and it became an album highlight as well as a much-talked-about song on the streets. The Firm's only album sold poorly but charted well upon its relase. Although debuting at number one on the Billboard 200 the album quickly fell off the charts.
Brown went on to release a single "Big Bad Mama" featuring Dru Hill from Def Jam's How to Be a Player soundtrack. It became a minor hit and set Brown up to launch another album.
1999-2000: The Chyna Doll
In 1999 Foxy Brown released her second album Chyna Doll which made chart history when it became the first album by a female rap artist to enter the Billboard 200 at #1, even though its first single "Hot Spot" failed to reach the U.S. top fifty. Chyna Doll was certified platinum by the RIAA (shipping over one million copies), but it did not live up to the expectations of her record label.
Later that year, Brown was a spokesmodel for Calvin Klein Jeans. At the end of 1999, Brown and her fiancé Kurupt ended their five year relationship. By the year 2000, several of Brown's friendships in the industry, such as those with Jay-Z and Nas, became strained. Brown suffered from depression and entered rehab for an addiction to prescription painkillers. Also in 1999 Brown appeared on the cover of Essense magazine's August issue. The article was titled "Dignity or Dollars". In it Brown stated she wanted to clean up her image, even appearing clothed a lot more than she had previously and it countered the negative press she received for her Vibe magazine cover shot in which she posed wearing a silver bikini and suggestively holding her crotch.
Brown's personal problems continued to escalate. On March 6, 2000, Brown crashed her Range Rover in Flatbush, Brooklyn. Her injuries were minor but police arrested her for driving while her license had been suspended for not paying two parking tickets.
2001-2003: Broken Silence
In 2001, Brown released the critically acclaimed Broken Silence album. The first single "BK Anthem" was gritty and more underground than any of Brown's previous singles. It gave "props" to her hometown, Brooklyn, and other famous rappers such as The Notorious B.I.G. and Jay-Z. The song's music video had a similarly urban and home-grown feel, and was made to look like it was cheaply recorded from a home video camcorder. The second single from the album "Oh Yeah", which featured her then boyfriend Jamaican reggae artist Spragga Benz, marked Brown's debut in the reggae/dancehall genre of music. Brown's record label Def Jam didn't put forth the same promotion as they had with her two previous albums, although music critics hailed Broken Silence as Brown's most personal and introspective work to date. The album became Foxy's lowest selling album to date. The album sold over 800,000 copies and went gold.
In 2002, Brown received her first Grammy nomination for Best Female Rap Solo Performance for her single "Na Na Be Like" from the Broken Silence album.
In 2003, Brown returned to the music scene briefly on a DJ Kay Slay single called "Too Much For Me". In April Brown appeared on popular New York radio jock Wendy Williams' radio show, and revealed the details of her relationship with Def Jam President at the time, Lyor Cohen and Sean P. Diddy Combs. Brown accused both of illegally trading her recording masters. She also announced that Cohen shelved her long awaited fourth album Ill Na Na 2: The Fever because of her refusal to accept new contractual terms. Brown tearfully revealed that the overwhelming stress from Def Jam resulted in her having a miscarriage (she was expecting her first child with boyfriend Spragga Benz). Less than 24 hours after the interview was broadcast, Ill Na Na 2: The Fever mysteriously surfaced online for downloading and bootlegging. A few months later Brown appeared on the cover of the popular hip-hop magazine XXL, and shared her desire to leave Def Jam. In late 2003 Brown was released from the label.
2004-Present: The Rebirth
In 2004, Brown reunited with her childhood friend Jay-Z, when he became the president of Def Jam and signed her to his subsidiary, Roc-A-Fella Records. Later that year, Brown joined Jay-Z and a slew of other hot hip-hop acts on his "Jay-Z and Friends" tour. Brown also began recording her fourth solo album, Black Roses. Later that year, Brown was allegedly involved in a physical altercation with two manicurists over a payment dispute.
In April 2005, female rapper Jacki-O alleged that she and Brown got into a physical altercation at a recording studio in Miami, Florida. Jacki said that Brown came in the studio during her session and expected her to "bow down" to her. She said that Brown constantly belittled her, and a heated argument ensued. Jacki alleged that verbal altercation eventually escalated into fist fight. While Brown did admit that there was definitely a verbal disagreement, she denied that it ever turned physical. Brown said that Jacki was "disrespectful" and that she exaggerated the incident to gain publicity for her upcoming project. [3] [4] [5]
On December 5, 2005, her attorney Joseph Tacopina said that Brown is almost totally deaf and that he cannot communicate with her verbally any more. Brown told reporters on December 15 that she was diagnosed with sudden hearing loss in May while she was recording her upcoming album.
Shortly after Tacopina spoke to the public about her hearing condition, news spread that Brown had fired him. According to reports, Tacopina was never given permission by Brown or her agent to discuss her medical condition to reporters.
On December 15, 2005, Brown held an emotional press conference in New York City, where she revealed that she is now 100% deaf due to sensorineural hearing loss. She also revealed that she had not heard another person's voice since May 2005. Brown underwent surgery in early 2006 in hopes of restoring her hearing. Post recovery, Brown said that she plans to finish working on her fourth solo album, Black Roses, for a 2006 release. At the conference, Brown was surrounded by many supporters, including her friend supermodel Tyson Beckford, hip-hop mogul Russell Simmons, Kimora Lee Simmons and rapper Doug E. Fresh.
She successfully had surgery that got her hearing back 100%, after a year of deafness. In interviews she stated that she went straight from the operating room to the studio in order to complete her album due out in December 2006.
Legal run-ins
- On January 25, 1997, the 18-year-old Brown spat on two hotel workers in Raleigh, North Carolina when they told her they didn't have an iron available. When she missed a court appearance, another arrest warrant was issued and she finally turned herself in on April 30, 1997. She eventually received a 30-day suspended sentence and was ordered to perform 80 hours of community service. [6] [7]
- On March 6, 2000, Brown crashed her Range Rover in Flatbush, Brooklyn. Her injuries were minor but police arrested her for driving while her license had been suspended for not paying two parking tickets. [8]
- On July 26, 2002, Brown was arrested in Kingston, Jamaica for an altercation with a policewoman at Norman Manley International Airport. When she missed a court appearance two days later, Jamaican authorities announced that she would be arrested if she returned to the island. [9]
- On August 29, 2004, Brown allegedly attacked two manicurists in Chelsea, Manhattan during a dispute over a bill. She was not charged for the incident until March 7, 2005. She has denied the charges and even rejected misdemeanor plea deals on May 6 and August 9, 2005. [10] [11] [12]
- On December 23, 2005, Brown was handcuffed in a Manhattan, New York courtroom after an exchange with a judge. Brown was in court to finalize a plea deal stemming from an August 2004 incident in which she allegedly assaulted two manicurists at a nail salon. Judge Melissa Jackson thought Brown was chewing gum and asked her to get rid of it. Brown responded by opening her mouth and sticking her tongue out. Judge Jackson ordered Brown cuffed to a bench for fifteen minutes, but when a female court officer attempted to handcuff her they got into a heated exchange over a bracelet the rapper was wearing. Judge Jackson alleged that Brown also struck the officer. When Brown refused to apologize, she was threatened with thirty days in jail. She eventually apologized to the court. The confusion was that she stuck out her tongue to show that she had no gum, not to disrespect the judge. [13] [14]
Discography
Singles
| Year | Song | U.S Hot 100 | U.S. R&B | U.S. Rap | UK singles | Album |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1996 | "Ain't No Nigga" (with Jay-Z) | 50 | 17 | 4 | 31 | Reasonable Doubt |
| 1996 | "Touch Me, Tease Me" (with Case and Mary J. Blige) | 14 | 4 | 9 | - | Case |
| 1996 | "Get Me Home" (featuring Blackstreet) | - | - | - | 11 | Ill Na Na |
| 1997 | "Sunshine" (with Jay-Z) | 95 | 37 | 16 | 25 | In My Lifetime, Vol 1. |
| 1997 | "I'll Be" (featuring Jay-Z) | 7 | 5 | 2 | 9 | Ill Na Na |
| 1997 | "Big Bad Mama" (with Dru Hill) | 18 | - | 9 | 12 | Def Jam's How To Be A Player Soundtrack |
| 1999 | "Hot Spot" | 91 | 22 | 23 | 31 | Chyna Doll |
| 1999 | "I Can't" (featuring Total) | - | 61 | 45 | - | Chyna Doll |
| 2001 | "B.K. Anthem" | - | 82 | 22 | - | Broken Silence |
| 2001 | "Candy" (featuring Kelis) | 32 | 48 | 10 | 48 | Broken Silence |
| 2001 | "Oh Yeah" (featuring Spragga Benz) | 52 | 63 | - | 27 | Broken Silence |
| 2003 | "Too Much For Me" (with Amerie, Nas, & Baby) | - | 53 | - | - | The Streetsweeper, Vol 1 |
| 2003 | "I Need a Man" (featuring The Letter M) | - | - | - | - | Ill Na Na 2: The Fever |
| 2005 | "You Already Know" (with 112) | 32 | 3 | - | - | Pleasure and Pain |
| 2005 | "Come Fly With Me" (featuring Sizzla) | 62 | 45 | - | 42 | Black Roses |
Guest/Soundtrack Apperances
- 1995: "I Shot Ya (Remix)" (with LL Cool J, Fat Joe and Mobb Deep; from Mr. Smith)
- 1996: "Touch Me, Tease Me" (with Case and Mary J. Blige; from Case)
- 1996: "Affirmative Action" (with Nas; from It Was Written)
- 1996: "No On Else (Remix)" (with Total, Da Brat and Lil' Kim; from Total)
- 1996: "You're Makin' Me High (Remix)" (with Toni Braxton; from Secrets)
- 1996: "Ain't No Nigga" (with Jay-Z; from Reasonable Doubt)
- 1997: "Release Some Tension" (with SWV; from Release Some Tension)
- 1997: "The Party Don't Stop" (with Mia X and Master P; from Unlady Like)
- 1997: "Sunshine" (with Jay-Z and Babyface; from In My Lifetime, Vol 2.)
- 1997: "Love Is All We Need(Remix)" (with Mary J. Blige; from Unreleased)
- 1998: "I Gotta Know" (with Playa; from Cheers 2 U)
- 1998: "Trial Of The Century" (with AZ; from Pieces Of A Man)
- 1999: "Paper Chase" (with Jay-Z; from Vol 2. Hard Knock Life)
- 2000: "Thong Song (Remix)" (with Sisqó; from Nutty Proffesor 2:The Klumps)
- 2001: "Blow My Whistle" (with Utada Hikaru; from Rush Hour 2)
- 2001: "Picture This" (with Benzino; from The Benzino Project)
- 2003: "If It Ain't One Thing" (with Luther Vandross; from Dance With My Father)
- 2004: "Does He Love Me" (with Keshia Chante; from Keshia Chante)
- 2004: "Got It Locked" (with Pitch Black; from Pitch Black Law)
- 2004: "Pretty Girl Bullshit" (with Mario Winans; from Hurt No More and Bad Boys 2)
- 2004: "More or Less" (with Shyne; from Godfather Buried Alive)
- 2004: "The Gang" (with Shyne; from Godfather Buried Alive)
- 2004: "Hatian Mafia" (with Wyclef Jean; from Welcome to Haiti: Creole 101)
- 2005: "You Already Know" (with 112; from Pleasure & Pain)
Trivia
- Foxy Brown was originally slated to appear on Mary J. Blige's single "Enough Cryin" from her album The Breakthrough, but was replaced at the last minute with Blige reciting her verse instead. This was because Jay-Z wrote the lyrics, but Foxy didn't do the track the way he wanted her to. Cam'ron, who is beefing with Jay-Z, is rumored to address that on a future track.
- Foxy Brown and rival Lil' Kim were reportedly offered one million dollars each to do a duet album titled Thelma & Louise but it was never recorded.
- Foxy Brown was supposed to collaborate with alternative rock singer Fiona Apple but so far has not due to scheduling conflicts. She also has reportedly done a song with another alternative singer Dido, for her unreleased album Black Roses.
- Foxy Brown is friends with Wyclef Jean, Lauryn Hill, Amerie, Tyson Beckford, Naomi Campbell, Kimora Lee and Russell Simmons, among other celebrities.
- Foxy Brown has beefed with numerous artists including Remy Ma, Ms. Jade, Brandy, Eve, Queen Penn, Ja Rule, Jay-Z, Nas, Maino, Jacki-O, Natina Reed of Blaque, Kurupt, Charli Baltimore, Lil Kim, and Cam'ron.
- Fellow female rapper Shawnna is a fan of Foxy Brown.
- Foxy Brown has appeared on several magazine covers including XXL, Vibe, The Source, King, Esscense and Jet.
- Foxy Brown recently got her hearing back as she had told in an interview, "I just got my hearing back. It's a miracle", she said. "I literally went from the operating table straight into the studio with Jay-Z. Now I'm looking forward to my new album, which is dropping Christmas Eve."